Monthly Archives: March 2013

Following on from parts one and two of this blog we move closer to the present day. After a Nokia disaster and the falling from favour of the Symbian operating system it was time to move to Android and a Samsung Galaxy followed. Still converged onto one device for the time being. Apple were starting to shift the ipad and then Samsung were hot on their heels with the Galaxy Tab. I had to have one and I was back to two devices again. This suited my always on the road lifestyle much better. Apps were getting better and more plentiful this was good. The original was a 7 inch device and I regretted going to a 10 inch Motorola Xoom, so much so that I swapped it for a 7 inch galaxy tab 2. But what they didn’t tell me before I bought it was that it didn’t support apps being run from external memory. I have been reliant on this function for years as I have a lot of apps and files mobile devices. Bummer. This to be fair is the only downer on this device which along with my mobile now goes everywhere with me. The Kies syncing software hasn’t yet addressed the problem with Syncing software which has got slower and clunkier since Psiwin 1.1. So syncing software has got worse, what about other things? Well apps have got progressively better but battery life has definitely got worse. I also think that these devices are not as rugged as my first Psion 3c and have become a style statement as much as a tool. On the train I see more people using these devices for games, music and reading books and opposed to work which is what I use the device for 70% of the time. I once tried to replace my full work rig basically the contents of my briefcase with just the tab and a few other must haves. It didnt work for a week but for a week end or an overnighter its fine. My only final gripe concerns the software available that replaces Microsoft Office specifically Excel on these devices. I do like QuickOffice Pro. I have a number of complex spreadsheets that effectively run my business and are used to provide advice and information to clients, these have complex controls and macro’s embedded within them. Unfortunately these seem unable to run correctly on anything else but a proper Microsoft Device. I am not yet convinced my Microsoft’s Tablet offerings.

Following on from the first part of this blog we move into an era where one device became the norm, and at this point things got worse. In my opinion Windows Mobile was not ready and its syncing software too bloated. I was using one of these at the time. It was a bit of a disaster and in my opinion may have been too early to market. I swiftly returned to Nokia with an E61. Nokia’s answer to the blackberry. They so nearly had it right. The footprint was a little chunky and the syncing problems were still there. Shrink the footprint a little and improve the operating system, add a good camera and with Ovi bring some nice apps to the table and you have the Nokia E71, a very good and capable replacement. . However the syncing software is now so bloated and really beginning to irk. I managed to lose the E71 and this was followed by an E72. This was the worst most unreliable phone I have ever owned and had to go back 5 times in 13 months. This effectively ended my relationship with Nokia. It is a pity because they had in my opinion really trounced Blackberry with the E71 it was a solid good business phone doing everything well and perfect for a life on the road. During this time single device convergence was key but would it last? Look out for part three to find out!

I have been a heavy user of mobile technology for 16 years and recently got thinking as to whether or not the technology has got better or worse by examining the kit I have been using for the past 16 years. 1997-2002. The Psion Years During this period I think pretty much followed the majority of the market. My primary device was a Psion 3c for the most part until it got stolen These were pretty cool devices with good built in apps and ran for a month on 2 AA batteries. This I backed up with a pretty standard for the time Nokia 6150.This was a fairly good and rugged pairing for a while until the Psion 3c was replaced with a Psion 5mx and another standard business issue Nokia mobile phone. This ended its life falling out of a coat pocket as the coat was removed from an airline overhead locker at Dublin Airport. A sad day. The Psion kit was hard and rugged, earned it spurs and the kit led a hard life. It is also worth noting that I worked for Psion for a while in back in 1997. Palm. 2002 – 2006 Psion had seriously lost their way at this point and were headed firmy down the road marked obscurity and their product lines becoming obselete. Palm had moved in and were here to stay. A series of palm devices followed. Along with the trusty Nokia and a back up mobilephone. Often a Nokia 9 series such this one: I have always favoured the 2 device approach and wasn’t going to change anytime soon so I had a string of palm devices. These were pretty good business devices and served me well, although PC syncing and the diary application had their little quirks. The Tungsten T3 was cool and led a hard life until they brought out a very cool device called the Lifedrive. It had 4Gb internal storage and doubled as an extension of my Ipod. This however was not cool as it looked and had several reliability issues. This I think is where it all started to go seriously wrong with secondary mobile devices for a while. I will cover this in the next bit.

Last week I had the pleasure of paying an unexpected visit to Bern in Switzerland. A lovely city with lots to commend it aside of the outrageous cost of everything! One thing however stood out above everything else. Snow. It has been snowing in England every other week since the new year and when it does snow the whole place falls to crap. People forget how to drive properly, start panic buying in the shops, public transport also grinds to a halt. Every morning in Bern I would walk through snow much heavier than we have seen in England for 10-12 minutes. The big difference. Public transport ran to time. People didn’t complain. The roads and pavements were clear unlike the situation in this country and everything ran so smoothly. The big question therefore is that if other countries can cope, why can’t England? Schools are shut roads are blocked, public transport isn’t working correctly. What a joke!

So what been happening recently with me, Court Capital Partners and more? As some as you may know I have had a few health issues on and off since 2010. Chest pains, eye problems and now problems with my ears and hearing. As more of you may know I have had for many years a healthy IT consultancy with a large number of clients based in mainland Europe. Over the past 2 months problems with my ears and almost constant earache which gets worse when flying have mean’t that I am now medically banned from flying and driving. Thats 60% of my business and income down the swanny 🙁 as I am effectively banned from business travel. Eurostar also causes problems because of the pressure when the train is underground. and that is not a good feeling. I am not however going to wallow. The doctors have so far been buckshee useless in getting it sorted and getting the pain under control. I am certainly soon to have a major argument with certain parts of the NHS. After an international career spanning 13 years, 900 flights, 2500 nights in hotel rooms, the odd speeding ticket and a pranged hire car or 3 I returned home from my last business trip for the foreseeable future on Friday night in agony after a lengthy journey from Luxembourg via train. A pretty sad but thought provoking event. So what am I doing about it? Well for a start I am putting my non-UK client list up for sale. I have decided to heavily develop Court Capital Partners and before we tail off for the Christmas break you can expect to see a few new things here. I am also looking for new business ventures and casting the net to see what is out there. I will be updating my personal blog here on an ad hoc basis. Also expect to see me doing more face to face networking than I have been over the past 3-4 years, if you feel there is an event worth attending please let me know. I’m looking forward to this new chapter in life and as they say as one door closes hopefully another one opens and I am going to try not to let it get me down.